Panelists 2014

Speakers will discuss their topic for approximately 45 to 60 minutes. We believe that their knowledge and expertise will certainly contribute to enriching the experience of all attendees at the conference.

Nelson OrtizVice-ChairmanIESA Business Venezuela Chairman Advisory Committee of GCL Program at Georgetown University

Mr. Ortiz was in the capital markets for over 20 years and was President of the Caracas Stock Exchange from 2000 to 2007. He was part of the Latin American Merchant Banking Group at Bankers Trust in New York from 1992 to 1998. Previously, he spent almost 17 years at the Central Bank of Venezuela in various positions including President chief of staff. On two occasions during his career at the Central Bank, he was called to serve as technical secretary of the Economic Cabinet of Venezuela. He twice chaired the Committee of the Board of Governors of the Interamerican Development Bank.

Mr. Ortiz is presently the Vice-Chairman of IESA Venezuela business school, a member of the board of directors of several private corporations in Latin America, Chairman of the Advisory Committee of the Global Competiveness and Leadership Program at Georgetown University, a member of the Dean Council of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, a member of the board of the Youth Orchestra of the Americas, and a member of the Group of Fifty an organization composed by some of the most important business leaders in Latin America. In addition, Mr. Ortiz was a member of the board of El Nacional one of the daily national newspapers in Venezuela a member of the Advisory Board of the President of the Interamerican Development Bank for Private Sector issues a member of the Advisory Board of the Latin American Chapter of the World Economic Forum and President of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. He is a graduate of the University Católica Andrés Bello in Caracas Venezuela where he earned his bachelors degree in Economics.(Source)

José “Pepe” HermosilloChairman & CEO Casa Noble Tequila

A founding partner of Casa Noble, has applied his business skills to develop the company into an ultra-premium tequila brand. Responsible for the unique techniques applied to the production of the spirit, Hermosillo has played an integral role in garnering Casa Noble international acclaim and award recognition within the tequila industry. Hermosillo was born in Guadalajara, Mexico, and first introduced to the world of business by his father, a well-respected and successful businessman who was involved in the hospitality and building industries. Choosing to pursue his scholastic interests, Hermosillo studied economics at the University of Dallas and received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Occidente (ITESO) in Guadalajara. Soon thereafter, he took over the helm of his family’s seventh-generation business, which dates back to the 1700s, and still continues today as one of the most reputable and profitable construction companies in Mexico.

Currently, Hermosillo oversees Casa Noble’s innovative production systems and has been instrumental in implementing inventive ideas and concepts including the triple-distillation method, French white oak barrels, and the new Single Barrel varieties into the tequila-making process. He also helped develop the revolutionary Single Barrel category alongside the Tequila Regulatory Council (Consejo Regulador del Tequila) in Mexico. Hermosillo, alongside partner Carlos Hernandez and four other tequila distillers, was also involved in developing Tequila Riedel Glass, a line of exclusive tequila glasses designed to highlight the finest characteristics of the spirit. Hermosillo, who still resides in Mexico, also supervises the development and expansion of Casa Noble’s 1,500-acre estate, distillery, and new hacienda. Hermosillo, together with his partners Hernandez, who he met in 1997, andCarlos Santana in 2011 will be engaging the consumer’s passion for luxury tequilas. Hermosillo was recently profiled in Latino Leaders magazine in their Latino Entrepreneurs section. (Source)

Daniel SpecharExecutive of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development at Corporacion Andina de Fomento

Daniel Spechar is an Executive at the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Department at CAF, Development Bank of Latin America. CAF is a multilateral development bank that has the mission of promoting sustainable development and regional integration by financing projects in the public and private sectors, and providing technical cooperation and other specialized services.Daniel Spechar is a graduate of Indiana University with a B.S. in Business and a B.A. in Psychology in 2004. Afterwards he obtained a Masters in Marketing Management from I.E. Business School in 2009 and joined CAF later that year. As an Executive at the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Department also known as MSME, Daniel helps support micro, small and medium enterprises by providing access to financial services, particularly credit through the funding of microfinancial institutions. These types of firms are essential in promoting an equitable economic development as MSMEs constitute the majority of the Latin American business sector and generate more than half of the region´s jobs. His other functions include investing in private equity and venture capital funds focused on SME development and administrating all the aspects related to the management of an internal fund. Daniel’s expertise and insight into venture capital and financing of enterprises will prove invaluable for the entrepreneurship panel.

Mario ValdiviaEntrepreneur Fundación MustakisAdvisory Board Chile

Mario Valdivia is a Chilean business man and social entrepreneur who is working to promote the practice of philanthropy in Chile, for societal benefit. He started his professional career in Chile, joining IM Trust & Co., a small Chilean Investment banking firm partially owned by Bankers Trust NY Corporation, in 1987. In 1991 he left IM Trust to co-found Excel Chile Servicios Financieros S.A. (Excel Financial Services Chile S.A.). From 1992 to 2005 Excel represented Chile in the investment banking businesses of Credit Suisse First Boston. Another partner in Excel was Felipe Larrain, current Finance Minister of Chile. During 1995 Mr. Valdivia also founded a company in the records management industry. He acted as chairman and controlling shareholder of this venture until 2004 when it was sold to Iron Mountain Inc. From 1992 to 2006 Mr. Valdivia held board positions at several large Chilean Corporations, including Financiera Conosur, the largest consumer bank in Chile at the time (1992 to 1999); Farmacias Ahumada, the largest drugstore chain in Latin America (1993 to 2006); Salmones Multiexport, one of the largest producers of salmon in the world (2004 to 2006). In late 2009 Mr. Valdivia became a senior equity partner at Independencia Asset Management LLC (IAM) headquartered in Miami. This firm invests in core commercial real estate properties in large metropolitan areas of the East Coast of the United States, and brings him to Boston several times each year for business. IAM manages institutional funds from Chilean pension funds, as well as from Chilean investors. Since 2010 IAM has completed eighteen acquisitions, twelve in the Boston area.

Mario Valdivia is a Chilean who has done more than any other single person to promote a national consciousness around philanthropy in Chile. He spent several years as a fellow at the Kennedy School at Harvard to focus on philanthrophy in the American context, and has been working diligently to bring this practice to Chile. He has been working for several years with a group of Chilean industrialists and entrepreneurs to advance philanthropy in the country, with the aim of strengthening Chilean society. (Source)

Francisco AristeguietaCEO Citigroup, Inc. Latin America

Francisco Aristeguieta joined Citi in Venezuela in 1994. Currently, he is the CEO of Citigroup Latin America responsible for all businesses in the 23 countries where Citi is present in this important region. Latin America accounts for 16 percent of the Global Net Income of Citigroup, employing 30,000 people around the region.Before this role, he served as Citi Transaction Services (CTS) Head for Latin America & Mexico, managing our Institutional Client Group's (ICG) core product set: Cash Management, Trade, Custody, Corresponding Banking and Export Agency Finance. He was a member of the Banco Nacional de Mexico (Banamex) Executive Committee and of the CTS Global Executive Committee.

Prior to that role, Mr. Aristeguieta served as CEO for the Andean Region Cluster of countries and Colombia directly. During that time, he was responsible for all the business in Colombia and the Andean Region Cluster (Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador & Bolivia). Prior to this role, Mr. Aristeguieta was the CEO for Citigroup Venezuela and before that, Ecuador.

Before joining Citigroup, Mr. Aristeguieta worked for Vestcor Partners for which he covered debt capital markets for Venezuela, Colombia and Brazil, and, prior to that, for Petroleos de Venezuela's (PDVSA) Project Finance Group.

Mr. Aristeguieta holds an M.B.A. from Brunel University in London, England, obtained under a British Council and Petroleos de Venezuela scholarship, a graduate degree in banking and finance and an undergraduate degree in business administration with a major in management both from the Universidad Metropolitana in Caracas, Venezuela. (Source)

Carlos GarcíaDirector Office of Cuba Broadcasting

As the Director of the Office of Cuba Broadcasting, Carlos García-Pérez is responsible for the strategic planning and direction of TV Martí, Radio Martí and Martinoticias.com, which are collectively known as the Martís.

Under the guidance of García-Pérez, the Martí’s have transformed into a one-of-a-kind multimedia operation that encompasses radio, television, Internet, mobile and social media. He has overseen the overhaul of the station’s programming and re-launch of the Martí website martinoticias.com. In just over a year, the number of daily visitors to martinoticias.com increased one-hundred fold, reaching record highs.

Under García-Pérez’s direction, the Martí’s seek to become the most consistent, reliable and authoritative source on all matters related to Cuba. Coverage includes reporting on local Cuban events, human rights issues, and the dissident movement, as well as Cuba’s relations with the U.S. and other countries.

A 1988 graduate of the Hofstra University School of Law in Hempstead, New York, García-Pérez took the helm at the Office of Cuba Broadcasting in November, 2010. Prior to that, he served as a litigator at Goldman, Antonetti & Cordova, one of the largest law firms in Puerto Rico. There he represented many clients in the U.S. as well as throughout Latin America. He has a B.S. degree in Economics and International Relations from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He and his family live in Miami, Florida.(Source)

Leopoldo Martinez, JD, LLM, is a Lawyer with Graduate Studies at Harvard, Princeton and the University of Miami. Mr. Martinez has worked with large international law and accounting firms and possesses extensive experience advising Fortune 500 companies, international business and governments.

He is also an author and was Professor of Tax and Public Finance Law, which led to his election as an independent Congressmen in Venezuela with important experience in the Inter-American system; complex negotiations and alternative methods for international dispute resolution.

Leopoldo Martinez also serves as Director at Datastrategy Political Consultants. Mr. Martinez has mastered the art of using television and engineering a message based on positive communications, motivating audiences to take action and participate. He produced, directed and hosted Constructores de un Pais, one of Venezuela's most appraised talk shows and linked it to a Foundation that worked with "grass-root" movements in social development and entrepreneurial education for low income communities. He also introduced a constituency-driven approach during his tenure as Congressmen, developing efficient means and channels of communications with his electoral base using new technologies combined with a cost-efficient use of mass media. In the private sector Mr. Martinez designed and implemented efficient strategies and programs promoting "corporate citizen social responsibility”.

Committed to sustainable democratic change in the Americas, Mr. Martinez is the Chairman & CEO of the Center for Democracy and Development in the Americas (www.cddamericas.org), as such he is the Publisher of IQLatino (www.IQLatino.org). He is also an advisor to the Group of Fifty Foundation (www.g-50.org). (Source)(Source)